Hyperlocal Tokyo

I recently visited a popular soba noodle restaurant in Harajuku, located on Takeshita Street. It's a bit off the beaten path, but it's hard to believe such a delicious soba restaurant exists in this location. The restaurant is located in the basement and has both counter and table seating. However, since the owner is running the entire operation by himself, it takes a bit of time for the food to come out. On this particular day, I enjoyed some beer and a dish of angelica shoots, followed by a mountain vegetable tempura and a duck seiro (cold soba noodles with duck). The tempura was especially crispy and could have easily passed for a tempura specialty restaurant. The duck in the duck seiro was also thick-cut and full of flavor. The soba noodles were smooth and fragrant. They also have aged soba, so I'd like to come back here at night next time.

The set lunch menu is quite a bargain. Of course, there's delicious sake, but they also have great wine. The soba noodles have a wonderful aroma and texture, and they go perfectly with the slightly sweet broth. The ingredients in the rice dish are seasonal and offer great value for money. (This day, it was crab from Kasumi and bamboo shoots.) The vegetables in the tempura are also flavorful, and overall, the food is of a high standard.

I dined there in the evening and enjoyed the course. I was able to choose from three different types of vegetable side dishes, including wild mountain vegetables, and enjoyed three types of soba noodles, including wild mountain vegetable tempura, duck roast, aged soba, and 100% buckwheat soba. The flavorful soba noodles, seasonal wild mountain vegetables, and soba tea were all wonderful and suited the location perfectly.

The interior is surprisingly Japanese-style, considering it's right in the middle of Harajuku Takeshita Street. If you come here, I recommend trying the Rikyu Tofu (delicious sesame tofu), tempura made without eggs in the batter, buckwheat ice cream, and if it's the right season, fresh seaweed mixed with the soba noodles. The soba noodles are, of course, delicious. I plan to bring my daughter, who has an egg allergy, here next time to try the professional-quality tempura (and the fresh seaweed soba)!

A hidden gem of a soba noodle shop on Takeshita Street, serving thin noodles in a sweet broth. I enjoyed a lunch set in the dimly lit, tranquil atmosphere. The soba was delicious, and the accompanying salad and rice were also quite good.